FE UNY Held Ketoprak to Celebrate Dies Natalis

Malin Kundang is a folk tale from Sumatra, while the story of Bandung Bondowoso and Roro Jonggrang is a legend in Java. These two stories were creatively wrapped by FE UNY in a humorous ketoprak (a traditional Javanese theater performance) event, held last Saturday (18/6). The Ketoprak 'Dagelan' was held as one of the events commemorating the 11th Anniversary of FE UNY. All cast members are lecturers, staff, and students who have an interest in the arts. Director and also event coordinator Rr. Chusnu Syarifa said that this ketoprak is a form of preserving Javanese culture. "In addition to ‘nguri-uri’ Javanese culture of ketoprak, this event is to foster communication, creativity, and critical thinking soft skills for all parties involved. In addition, this event is expected to be a form of entertainment for the academic community of FE UNY in particular and society in general,” explained Chusnu, who is also a lecturer in the Department of Administrative Education at FE UNY. 

Dean of FE UNY Dr. Siswanto, M.Pd., gave the welcoming speech before the Ketoprak event and the awarding of trophies of Dies Natalis celebrations as well as the SPARCO student competition. “This Ketoprak is the creativity of students and lecturers of FE UNY. The manuscript itself was written by Administrative Education students, and the director was also a lecturer in the Department of Administrative Education,” said Siswanto.

In this ketoprak, Bandung Bondowoso, who accepted Roro Jonggrang's condition to build a thousand temples, had to fail in his plan because of a third party; Malin Kundang, whom Roro Jonggrang preferred. Malin Kundang, who managed to bring Roro Jonggrang back to his village in Sumatra then refused to admit his mother, who turned out to be Roro Jonggrang's assistant.

Some of the main characters in the ketoprak entitled "The Love Story of Roro Jonggrang and Malin Kundang" include Lina Nur Hidayati, M.M., as Roro Jonggrang, Soeroto as Bandung Bondowoso, M. Roestam Afandi, M.Ec.Dev., as Malin Kundang, and Joko Kumoro, M.Sc., as the puppeteer. Other supporting casts also consist of lecturers, education staff, and students of FE UNY. (fdhl-ed:ekki)